Early And Adequate Funding
For K-12 Education
By Senator Gene Therriault

April 02, 2004
Friday

Early and adequate funding for K-12 education is indisputably
among the Legislature's top priorities this year. No one wants
to put teachers and school districts through the agony and uncertainty
of cutting programs and issuing pink slips.

Legislators from both parties
in both the House and Senate agree that education funding should
be increased, we even agree on approximately how much it should
be increased-between $82 million and $84.5 million.

The sticking point lies in
the "package" of other projects that has been demanded
in order to gain the 15 Senate votes and 30 House votes needed
to access the Constitutional Budget Reserve.

Two proposals are currently
on the table.

On March 5, the Senate Majority
amended an existing bill, Senate Bill 35, to increase K-12 funding
by $82 million, which includes money to cover shortfalls in the
public employees and teachers retirement systems due to market
fluctuations and increased health costs. The bill passed the
Senate unanimously, but the CBR vote failed 11 to 7.

I now realize that an extra
day or two between rolling out Senate Bill 35 in the Finance
Committee and moving it to the floor for a vote may have helped
secure the needed votes. However, with Senators traveling to
Washington D.C. for the national Energy Council meeting and the
request for quick action from school districts, we felt immediate
action was critical.

On March 8, the House amended
a different K-12 education package onto an existing bill, Senate
Bill 283. The House increased the K-12 budget, but also included
a list of non-education related capital projects totaling roughly
$10 million.

The Senate, in turn, countered
with a proposal to include $7.4 million to fund the top projects
on the Department of Education school district major maintenance
list.

Both plans depend on a three-quarters
vote to balance spending for fiscal years 2004 and 2005 using
the CBR. We tied the CBR draw to education spending because we
believe education is the type of statewide priority that warrants
such a vote, and we rolled out the plan early to allow school
districts to plan their budgets accordingly.

Unfortunately, we have not
reached agreement on what capital projects should be included
to reach the necessary votes. The Senate finds the $10 million
in non-education related discretionary capital projects demanded
by the House Democrats unacceptable, and came back with what
we believe to be a much more appropriate list that addresses
the top 16 school projects of the Department of Education. It
is important to note that we chose to fund the top priority projects
of the Department-all in rural areas. We did not hopscotch down
the list to make political points, but relied on the best judgment
of the Department.

The projects include $603,000
for Allakaket to replace or repair water and sewer facilities
and aging boilers, and to renovate restrooms in a school built
in 1979; $170,000 for code violations in the Andreafski High
School; and $90,000 to install a new well in an Anvik school
built in 1979. The Anvik well failed in 1998 and the school has
since paid maintenance and usage fees to the city of Anvik.

In contrast, the House list
includes pet projects such as $250,000 for a boat haul out, $100,000
for a bulldozer and $50,000 for a seawall.

The House list also includes
$3.4 million for erosion control in Shishmaref. The Senate Majority
package also includes money for this community, but in the sum
of $450,000 to match U.S. Army Corps of Engineers funding, which
would allow access to a total of $1.6 million to protect the
school in Shishmaref.

While I am disappointed that
our early efforts have not yet provided closure for school districts
caught in the grip of this gridlock, I am still hopeful we will
reach agreement soon. The Senate has officially rejected the
House capital list and anticipates appointing a Conference Committee
to negotiate an acceptable compromise.

Note: Sen. Gene Therriault
(R-North Pole) is a member of the Alaska Legislature and is Senate
President.

Note: Comments published
on Viewpoints are the opinions of the writer
and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Sitnews.